Miracles: The Canton Godfather (First Print Edition Blu-ray) Unboxing

Miracles (奇蹟 / Qí Jī), also known as Miracles: The Canton Godfather, is a 1989 Hong Kong live-action film directed by Jackie Chan and distributed by Golden Harvest and Fortune Star. The film stars Jackie Chan, Anita Mui, Gua Ah-leh, Chun Hsiung Ko, Wu Ma and Lo Lieh.

Background:

“An optimistic Gwok Zan-Waa (Jackie Chan) arrives in Hong Kong, quickly finding himself impoverished. That is, until a serendipitous encounter with a rose seller (Gua Ah-Leh) leads to his inadvertent appointment as boss of a local gang. Amidst the reluctant leader’s efforts to reform their fraternity and businesses, is an endeavour to share his new-found fortune with the bestower, all whilst trying to stave off rivals and the authorities. A remake of Frank Capra’s ‘Pocketful of Miracles’, Miracles – also known by its Hong Kong English title ‘Mr Canton and Lady Rose’ – is an action-comedy-romance set against a backdrop of lavish elegance and style.”

Plot Synopsis via 88 Films, December 2019

My knowledge of the Hong Kong film licensing business is very minimal but Miracles was one of many films that were brought over internationally over time, mostly due to Jackie Chan’s involvement since his popularity grew during the 80s and 90s. Miracles is also based on Frank Capra’s 1933 film Lady for a Day and 1961 film Pocketful of Miracles, both of which were based on Damon Runyon’s 1929 short story “Madame La Gimp”.

Miracles was released for international audiences around the world and much like a lot of Hong Kong titles it was also re-edited and as such a number of scenes were not included in those releases. In the UK, the film was distributed by Video Programme Dists Ltd and MIA Video Entertainment Ltd for VHS in 1990 with a 15 rating before eventually getting released as a PG in later releases. Distributor Hong Kong Legends eventually acquired the rights for a DVD release in 2001 and now fast forward to 88 Films with the license for a Blu-ray release in 2019.

88 Films focus on three different niches from the film industry; Italian films, horror films and also Chinese films, the latter of which has a sub-label called 88 Asia. The Jackie Chan films are not mentioned to be part of the 88 Asia brand on the packaging but they are mentioned when you load the disc for the first time. After releasing four Jackie Chan films in 2018, 88 Films revealed the second batch of titles from Fortune Star in 2019 with Miracles being included as one of the four.

First Edition Contents:

88 Films follows a trend similar to Arrow Video and Eureka Entertainment where they offer a first print edition that includes an o-card slipcase and a couple of physical extras to go with the package.

For Miracles, we have first print items made solely for this 88 Films release. The first print features a slipcover with really nice artwork done by R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien and a booklet written by William Blaik with additional details on Jackie Chan’s stunt team who were part of the film’s production and action scenes.

The SRP is £24.99 and has a 3000 unit print run. As of September 2020, the first print run has sold out and thus newer copies no longer include the O-card slipcase, and booklet.

Physical Contents:

• Limited Edition O-Card slipcase featuring unique artwork by R.P. “Kung Fu Bob” O’Brien
• Booklet

On-Disc Contents:

Distributor: 88 Films
Released: 9th December 2019

Miracles received a 4K restoration from the original Hong Kong version, which means the quality of the transfer will be better than the previous releases in the past.

The audio options available feature the main Cantonese language with newly translated English subtitles as well as the English dub. This release includes both the original Hong Kong version (Mr Canton and Lady Rose) running at 127 minutes and also the International version (Miracles) that ran at 107 minutes, using the 4K transfer at its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio. The Blu-ray disc is Region B locked and the subtitles are unlockable during playback.

Blu-ray Specs:

Languages	Cantonese, English
Audio	Hong Kong Theatrical Cut: Cantonese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 International Cut: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Video	1080p High Definition Native format 2.35:1 aspect ratio
Region	B
Subtitles	Hong Kong Theatrical Cut: English International Cut: English SDH
Locked Subtitles	No
Discs	1

Blu-ray On-Disc Extra Features:

• Hong Kong Teaser
• Hong Kong Trailer
• Jackie Chan: Film Director
• The Canton Godfather opening

Unboxing Photos:

In addition, here’s a round-up look at Crime Story, Dragons Forever, Heart of Dragon, Miracles and The Protector together.

Final Notes:

Miracles: The Canton Godfather is available to own on Blu-ray from 88 Films for the United Kingdom & Ireland. The first print edition has sold out but a regular standard edition Blu-ray is available to order on 88 Films’ official website and on Amazon UK.